WATCH: Humpback whale breaches right next to fishing boat near NH

HAMPTON BEACH, N.H. — A couple of fishermen got up close and personal with a humpback whale off the coast of New Hampshire last Thursday.

Zach Fahey told Boston 25 News he was out fishing near Hampton Beach in his 20-foot fishing boat when he spotted a whale in the distance.

"When it came out of the water, it was right there and it did, yeah, scare the crap out of me," Fahey said.

Fahey said the the journey began when he joined two others on a trip out to sea.

"A good friend of mine, my father and I jumped on my boat, and we went out into the ocean," Fahey said.

Then, a routine fishing trip off the coast of Hampton Beach turned into a rare encounter with a massive part of nature.

"I never thought he'd get that close to us," Fahey said, as the whale got within 10 feet of the boat. "I figured he was closer cause I saw all the fish, so I figured he was in our area."

Fahey said he had seen the same whale feeding on bait fish in the distance, so he instinctively got his phone out just in case.

"I said I'll start recording, and hopefully he'll come this way," Fahey said. "I just happened to turn at the same time he jumped for all the fish."

Fahey said the whale appeared to be two or three times as long as his 20-foot boat, and was lucky to catch the whole thing on camera.

"I just like that someone else can experience what I did," Fahey said. "It's not as cool in the video as it was in person, but still pretty cool to see."

Video courtesy: Zach Fahey

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